And the clock tick, tock
by ObviouslyElementary
Summary: Post Alice Through the Looking Glass, what I think happened between Time and red Queen!


Stayne had never loved her. The king had never loved her. Her parents, while in duty of loving her, had made a very poor job convincing her of that 'truth'. Her sister… Mirana didn't love her. She pitied her, her guilt made her want to love, but she didn't truly love Iracebeth like she said she did.

She had never been truly loved.

But then, one moment, she was.

The first time she heard of the Cronosphere, she knew it would be perfect. She could use it in so many ways, to go back and retrieve what was hers. She could get revenge over her sister, over Alice, she could prevent the Fell day, she could…

She could do so much.

And she was determined to find whoever was the owner of the Cronosphere and take it from them, no matter at what cost.

She would cut their head if necessary.

So there she went. She read many books where she found out about Time, the eternal being, ruler of time and Underland. Basically a god. Basically their god.

She knew where she could find him.

She left back to her old castle, smiling at the clock staying right behind her throne room. So that little present of her father hadn't been as useless as she had once thought.

Slowly opening the door and walking past the pendulum, she ventured into the dark paths of infinitude and eternity, until she reached the wonderfully beautiful and dark castle.

Never once she had seen something so dark and obscure in all Underland, aside from her own castle back in her slaughtering days.

Oh, how she missed the days where the red crimson of the blood of her enemies would roll down the guillotine.

It was no time for dwelling in memories long gone. She ventured inside the castle, looking around, her big head being no problem for the large and empty hallways of the place.

The castle had a constant tick-tock sound to it. As she walked, she saw a great clock ticking in the distance, and followed it until she was standing right in front of it, curious and a bit confused. Never once she had thought inside such an old thing there could be something so big and majestic.

That was also when she saw _him_ coming out from behind it, followed by small metal creatures.

Iracebeth had imagined a true god. Heavenly, with a long beard, old appearance, living in a castle of clouds in the high sky.

What she saw was a tall, handsome man, with a weird looking beard and a tall hat, black clothes, wide shoulder blades, and the most beautiful, glowing blue eyes she had ever seen.

Iracebeth had never been a calm, sweet woman. Not even before her accident, she was always loud and always spoke too much, even to those she held dear in her heart. However, as years passed and she was fooled time and time again, her heart became of stone and her voice and rage, even louder.

However at that second, staring at the confused and surprised pair of blue eyes that showed so much serenity in their core, she found herself… speechless.

"Um… hello?" the man said, his voice thick with accent, filled with questions. She could see them in his soft eyes.

Her moment of calm and peace didn't last very long, however, and soon she moved closer to him, deciding against just cutting off his head and taking the Cronosphere.

He seemed too good to be put to waste. She had to at least corrupt him a little.

If he was such a gentle, old being as he appeared be, she could easily take advantage of his god like solitude.

And so she did.

She did, and it all went to waste.

Months, she spent, getting to know him, being with him, using him again and again, taking his affection and putting it on a cage. She felt it, she was so close.

She had Time caged in her hands. Soon, she would rule the world, and he would be a mere pawn on her hand, just like the rest were.

However, in his eyes, she saw, there was something no one had ever shown. A passion, a warmth, that seemed to foreign to her and yet so familiar. He adored her, and she saw honesty in every action. An honesty that, she knowing were not, was slowly and constantly melting her cold as ice heart.

Not that she would notice it anyway, with her head being often clouded by flames of hatred.

In any case, no matter for how long she tried, her plans were fooled. Fooled by that Alice girl. Again. Now, not only she had destroyed all and every change Iracebeth had of revenge, but she had also found a way of fixing her hatred for her sister.

Weirdly enough, it wasn't with Mirana that Iracebeth was worried about now.

No.

Because after months of pretending she was doing it all for the Cronosphere, now that she had had what she wanted, had used it and had killed the entire Underland for a few seconds, she was afraid.

Afraid, because now, Time would never forgive her.

And unlike ever before, she felt sad.

He wanted him to forgive her.

She wanted his presents. His heat. His company. She wanted those flickering blue eyes to shine whenever she said something that fascinated him. She wanted to hear the turning of his engines when she woke up before him, calming and gentle. She wanted to hear him screaming with his seconds, commanding, giving orders. Showing her his castle, giving her small presents because he knew she liked the tiny things.

She wanted him, because with the eternity of time, he had melted her heart.

But he probably never wanted to see her again. Not after what she had done. Not after destroying everything and breaking him beyond repair, only to have Alice save everyone again.

As they left the castle, Iracebeth with her head low, holding Mirana's hand, who seemed brighter and shinier than ever, she didn't look back nor said goodbye. She wasn't worthy, and he probably didn't want them anyway.

They went back to Mirana's castle, and her sister noticed her sadness. Shooing the rest off and taking Iracebeth to the gardens, she sat down by a bench and watched as her sister did the same.

"Racie, what is wrong?" she whispered, her voice as soft and sweet as usual. Iracebeth sighed, shaking her head, her eyes still a bit teary. "Talk to me Racie… I have already apologized, and I would love to help you with whatever I can…"

"You cannot help me, Miwana" she mumbled and looked down at the flowers around them. She took one in her hands and sighed. "Somethings cannot be helped…"

"But some can" she said and took her hand, smiling ever so fondly. Iracebeth had grown to hate that smile, but now… now it was calming, a bit relieving. "Please Racie, tell me what troubles you"

"I will go to my chambers. We have a long day tomorrow, and I cannot wait to be condemned to more exile" she said and stood, leaving Mirana with a sad spark in her eyes. "Goodbye, Miwana" she sighed and walked away, letting the flower drop from her hand as she made her way into the castle and up to her room, her old room.

As she walked in, she took the small music box in her hand and laid down on her bed, not questioning that someone had gotten inside her chambers in her old castle and brought it here. She turned the lever slowly, the music playing as the small characters acted as they should.

 _'_ _Here it is. A present made entirely of love. And a little bit of metal and wood, of course. I know how you love the tiny things'_

She smiled sadly at the memory, and placed the music box on her bedside table, before looking around at the many presents she had received throughout their months of meetings.

Was he thinking about her, she wondered. Would he ever forgive her for what she had done?

Even if he didn't, somehow she knew he would always be at her side. It wasn't his choice really. He had to be at everyone's side, one way or another.

That was how Time was supposed to be.

And yet she missed him.

Her sentence was clear. She was not to be left in exile again, however she could not leave the surroundings of the castle, and were not allowed to go anywhere without the company of a guard, her sister or anyone queen Mirana saw fit. Which meant Tarrant and all those stupid, mad friends of his.

At least she could talk to the white rabbit, even if he was still scared of her.

Mirana had weirdly enough planted a few white roses in the gardens were Iracebeth spent most of her time. She hated white roses, and her sister probably knew that.

"Why did you plant white roses in my garden?" she asked, angrily, but her voice wasn't raised. She didn't do that anymore, unless she was too out of herself. She was trying to be good now. Mirana looked at her over her tea cup and smiled.

"I thought that perhaps you would like to paint them. I know painting is a very relaxing hobby and maybe it would help you let out your anger?" she said, softly, and Iracebeth sighed, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"Yes… perhaps" she muttered and sipped on her tea. Mirana seemed to glow.

"Perfect! I have brought some rouge paint, if you-"

"No" she said, and Mirana frowned lightly, confused. "I do not wish for the roses to be rouge. Please… bring me some blue paint"

"Blue..?" she asked, confused, and Iracebeth stared at her, angrily.

"Yes blue! Those are my roses and I shall paint them with whatever color I please!" she said, angrily, raising her voice, before she sighed and growled softly. "Just… light blue Miwana. Light blue"

"Do you… wish to have your room redecorated to light blue as well or..?" she started but at her older sister's glance, she was quick to close her mouth and nod. "Blue paint it is. But, may I ask why the sudden change? Aren't you the queen of hearts? Aren't hearts red?"

"I am queen no more" she said, bitterly, and moved the spoon inside her tea cup. "I have no more hearts to spare. And blue…" she stopped and then sighed again. "Blue calms me"

"As long as you are happy" Mirana said, a sweet smile in her lips, and sometimes Iracebeth wanted to sew those lips so they would never smile no more.

But that day… that day was not one of those times.

She had been painting for a good while now. Not knowing the exact 'light blue' that she had wished for, Mirana's guards bought and brought ten different shades of light blue to Iracebeth.

Weirdly enough, none of them were precisely correct, but then again she doubted there would ever be a paint color that would glow like his eyes did.

Mixing a few of them gave her the color she believed that would be appropriate if he had indeed blue, normal eyes. Silently and focused, she painted every petal delicately, holding the flowers on her hand and going from the ones most outside to the inner ones.

They looked so beautiful in that shade of blue.

She painted them all day long, humming softly as she did, finishing one of the fifty rose bushes by sunset.

She stood up at that, waving the dirty off her dress and heading inside, asking the guards for some food as she walked inside her chambers. She did not wish to go and dine with her sister that day. She wanted the peace and solitude of her clock ticking on the wall.

Only then she could sleep in peace, with a smile on her face.

Or what once would be a smile, and now was just a not frown.

She missed him too much.

Too, too much.

That day, he had not been busy.

Months after the death of Jabberwock, months after the last head that rolled, months after the last clock that had stopped ticking way too quickly, he felt at peace, at last. That particular day, he had taken his time to show his seconds how to clean the great clock in the way he found more effective.

So when he returned from the engine room, the last thing he had expected was to see a woman standing in front of the Great Clock of All Time, staring at it and then at him confused and clearly glorified by his invincible machine.

He could feel something that wasn't entirely connected to the clock inside his chest, moving his engines a bit wrongly as he stared at her.

He was so, so confused.

"Um… hello?" he asked, tilting his head, staring at her as she seemed to recollect herself and move closer to him, determined.

He did not know for what, but her stare alone made him feel breathless.

Never once he had thought that he, Time, the immeasurable, immensurable, invincible, infinite and eternal Time, would suffer the consequences of such small and stupid things such as feelings. And yet…

Yet, her big eyes and loud words seemed to make all his gear go wrong and all his springs get loose.

She was the most wonderful thing he had ever seen.

And he wanted her, like he had never wanted anything in the world.

For months she came, for months he loved. He learned how it felt, what it was, and he liked it. He treasured it. He lived on it, and he believed in it. She was wonderful, with her loud laugh and burning red hair and dark, mysterious eyes. He waited to see the smile on her face when she came over and he presented her with yet another gift. She demanded many, and he was always happy to comply.

He had made her clocks, toys, music boxes. All small, tiny, fitting in the palm of her little hand. He knew how she loved tiny things. He kept in his mechanical heart every story they shared, every moment she was quiet and sweet, every tale she told. He had a list in his brain of the things that she loved, the ones she liked, the ones she hated and the ones she didn't care about. She was very eclectic, and he never asked beyond his limits.

Mirana was a limit. The white queen. The sweetest person Time himself had ever seen and talked to, and yet she couldn't reach her sister's feet at how much adoration he felt for Iracebeth.

Alice was a limit. He had no idea who she was, but the girl surely had his Iracebeth suffer too much to be worthy of being spoken to and about.

Stayne was a limit. And so was the king, and all her past lovers. He wondered why, but didn't make much fuzz around it. Suddenly, he felt good for closing those clocks and putting them to rest. They would be a problem for him no longer.

In any case, Iracebeth had many limits. He respected them all. He waited for her visits excitedly, like a puppy waiting for its owner. He gave her the most wonderful presents, made himself more presentable every time she visited, fixed her some tea and even learned how to cook. Besides from all of that, he used his powers to make her a kingdom of vegetables to live in, with a direct passage to his own world, his own palace.

He ate on her hand and did not mind. She was worthy of it all.

But she also wanted the Cronosphere.

He saw how much she wanted it in her eyes, but never once let himself believe that was the reason why she had spent all those months with him.

It couldn't be, could it? Use him for so long, make Time her slave just for an orb that could travel through the oceans of time?

No, she wouldn't.

And yet…

She did.

When it was all over, Alice had left Underland and all of the others had gone home, Time found himself alone once again.

Like many months before, he was alone again. However this time, everything seemed heavier and harder to do.

Even though the grand clock was restored and working as well as before, his own little mechanical heart seemed to be as heavy as if the Cronosphere had been stolen again.

Not only he had met the most sweet little girl he could have ever met, and received a gift from her unlike ever before, he had also lost the only person he had ever loved in such a long time.

The red queen, Iracebeth, would never want to look at him again.

Or at least, so he thought. After denying her the Cronosphere for so long, after letting her enemy escape with it and help her go after her, Iracebeth now was a lost dream.

Not only he was upset for her anger and silent departure, now he was sure that whatever she had felt for him had been fake, and he would never more be able to live with himself.

He had wasted so much of himself on her during those months, and it was all for nothing. And he did not even regret it.

He just wondered… what he could made different, to make her like him.

Hadn't been their conversations enough? His always attentive ears to listen to her stories and worries? His small, tiny gifts made by hand? The compliments, the sweet words whispered into the darkness of his never ending night?

As he now stared outside to the infinitude of sky above his castle, he knew, that his tries had been in vain, and that he couldn't have asked anything else of himself.

He had given her what he could. He had spared every second, every minute, every hour. He had forgotten about non ticking clocks, spent days and nights without any rest, forgotten about repairs for the grand clock.

His world was her, for a long time, and her world was his heart.

The heart she wanted to steal, so she could have her revenge.

 _'_ _Beings like us'_ she had once said, caressing his hair as she meant it, eyes and body calm and collected like it unusually was _'have to stick together. Beings with power, consumed with solitude, must unite. Other people will only make us of idiots. Commoners only want us for power'_

He had once believed her words.

He had kissed her hands and held her close to his chest.

He had been so vulnerable, like he had promised he no longer would be.

He let himself waste away, and now he could never recover the him he had lost to her.

It was the trick of the destiny.

Time losing time… forever.

"I am glad you are now accepting more company, Time"

"And I am glad you invited me for yours, White Queen"

"Call me Mirana, please" she said, smiling, and he smiled back, both sitting on a white table by the outsides of his castle. He now craved for some company every once in a while, but still wasn't so keen in leaving his palace just yet.

"Well then, Mirana" he said, and she seemed to smile a bit more. "Tell me the reason of your visit"

"Oh, Time" she said, her smile fading and giving place to a distressed expression. "I do not know what else to do…"

"What happened? What is wrong?" he asked, confused, curious, and she sighed, looking down at the table and then back at him.

"It… it is my sister, Iracebeth"

Oh.

"What about her?" he asked, slowly, trying not to show how much that subject bothered him. Mirana sighed again, placing her tea cup down on the table.

"Oh Time, old being, she is… well… I should firstly say she is way better than before" she nodded, with no doubt in her eyes. "No longer with rage fits, or nothing of the sorts. She tolerates my friends now, even talks to them from time to time… but she seems so lonely" she said and looked up, her dark eyes lost. "As if something is missing"

"Her freedom, perhaps?" he asked, sipping on his tea calmly, controlling his hands so they wouldn't shake. "Dead villagers?"

"No, it is none of that" Mirana said, seriously, softly, and Time wondered how she was able to be so… collected. "Something inside her has changed, but she does not open up to me. Instead of painting her roses rouge she… she is painting them light blue"

His eyebrows knitted together, but they soon relaxed as he looked to the grand clock by the corner of his eyes, seeing the light blue glow coming from the Cronosphere.

It just couldn't be… could it?

"What else is strange about her? Perhaps she just found her new favorite color" he said, trying to make his heart stop ticking so loudly, so fast. Soon Mirana would notice.

"Well, she has also several small toys and music boxes and clocks laying all around, and refuses to tell me who made them" she frowned, frustrated. "She never stops cleaning them, using them, oiling them so they do not break… and still does not tell me who made them, or why she keeps them with so much care. It is unlike her, to care about something so deeply, and yet…"

"Mirana?" he asked, cutting her short, making her turn to him with wide and curious eyes. "May I pay your sister a visit?"

"Oh… yes Time, of course" she smiled. "I would never deny you or her a visit from a friend! But… do you believe your visit might get to something from my enquiries?"

"Perhaps" he said, sipping on his tea again, his eyes wondering to the table. "Perhaps it will…"

"Well… it costs only time to try" she said sweetly, and he hid a frown behind the cup. He wasn't very excited, but he had to know if his wonders were correct.

He had to find out if he still had a chance.

The day was sunny. The sky was blue. The clouds were white and fluffy.

It seemed like a perfect day for a picnic.

Iracebeth had food all around her. She had a pie, a few sandwiches to choose from, a few fruits and so on. She was currently painting her last rose when she heard someone approaching.

"I am busy" she said, in her loud, annoying voice. The person didn't stop, and by their sweet steps, she could tell it was Mirana as soon as she came close enough. "Yes sister?" she asked annoyed, turning to look at her. Mirana was grinning from ear to ear.

"You have a guest"

Iracebeth raised her eyebrow before turning back to her flower.

"I do not wish for any guests at this time, Miwana" she said, carefully sliding the brush over the petal, watching as from white she went blue. Mirana let out a soft giggle.

"Sorry, but he came anyway. I will leave you two alone" she said, and wondered off. Iracebeth frowned, stopping her painting. He? Was it Tarrant again, trying to convince her to wear one of his stupid hats? Or maybe the white rabbit she always forgot the name? Maybe a confused villager? They had had a few of her admirers coming over.

She sighed and put her brush on the ground before standing up and cleaning her dress. Only then she turned around, prepared to shoo away whoever it was. She was busy. She was a busy woman.

However, when she turned, she did not find a villager, nor a hatter nor a rabbit.

When she turned, she found those bright, blue eyes she hadn't seen in such a long time, that unlike the first time they had been seen, now held fear and hesitation in them, instead of confusion and curiosity.

"Tik-tok" she whispered, amazed, surprised, and he gave her an awkward smile, the same one he gave her when he said he couldn't give her the Cronosphere. The smile that simply said 'I am not sure if what I am doing is right or not anymore'.

"Darling" he said back, but did not approach. He did not move from where he stood, a few feet away from her, his hands behind his back, making him look formal, his hat in place, hiding his beautiful black hair.

She was still a little shaken. Very shaken. She hadn't expected to see him ever again!

And now there he was. Staring at her. With his awkward little smile and soft eyes and stupid hat and funny clothes.

"But… you… you cannot be here" she said, walking to him, and something in that phrase was said wrong, because it made him look down and away, embarrassed. "I mean… why? Why are you here?"

"I came… I came…" he tried, but didn't seem to find the words. She waited, like she had never waited for anything else in her entire life. "I came because I…"he swallowed thickly, and slowly he took a deep breath and looked at her again, winning over his nervousness and moving his hands to the front of his body to show her yet another tiny gift. "Because I still have… a last gift to give you"

A last gift.

She had really lost him then.

"Oh" she said, carelessly, taking the present and starting to open the box. She saw him flinching away at the way she took the box but remained calm on the outside. Inside, she was hurting. She was hurting so, so much. She hated it when it hurt. She didn't want it to hurt. Hadn't she hurt enough? With Stayne, with the king, with her family? Now with him too?

He had promised he would never hurt her.

But she had promised all the same, and she hurt him first.

As she opened the small wooden box, a small toy of Time popped out holding a small banner that read 'I love you' in his fancy and small handwriting. She stared at the little toy for a long time, time enough to make Time uncomfortable.

"I… Made it before the whole… adventure took place" he said, scratching his neck. He felt so nervous. "I was waiting… to give you at the right, opportune moment, but… it never came" he sighed, and looked away. "So I-"

"Do you mean it?" she asked, and he froze, before turning back to her. He jumped a bit in surprise. Her eyes were misty, filled with tears as she stared up at him. "Do you mean it? Do you still… did you ever… really, really loved me?" she muttered, brokenly, and his circuits puffed at how surprised he was.

"I… I always loved you" he said, frowning lightly and finally stepping closer to her. "Oh my dear, I have loved you since you put your feet inside my castle. I… I could never lie to you" he sighed and looked down at the box, lifting his hands and holding hers. "I have loved you… and I still love you" he smiled, sadly, caressing her small hands. "I know that what you did was not… entirely nice. But even so, it is all over and Underland is saved. And you grew over it, you learned what you needed to learn and now… now you are better. How could I ever stop loving you?"

She let go from the box, letting it fall on the ground and making him look up at her, confused and hurt, believing that it was a sign she wanted nothing with him. However, her small hands quickly moved up to his face and held his cheeks.

"I love you" she said, loudly, a bit roughly because she was holding back her tears, before she leaned in and pulled him down, kissing him gently and tilting her enormous head. Time's eyes flickered before he let them close, kissing her back and holding her small waist, his heart ticking loudly and fast, the world around them passing faster. She pulled away when day became night, eyes wide and surprised, before he let out a weak chuckle, his cheeks flustered.

"Sorry… Time gets… all confused when I…" he started, but she shook her head, looking back at him.

"I do not care" she said, firmly, and held his cheeks again, kissing him deeply and pulling him closer as he did the same, the days and nights passing and retuning quickly, going just as wild as he was.

From the window of the palace, Mirana, Tarrant and all the rest of their friends watched, some confused, some grossed out, but Mirana… Mirana was in a bliss.

"I bless you two, big sister" she whispered, kissing her hand and blowing it to the sky, smiling as clouds gathered and snow started to fall.

Neither one of the lovers seemed to mind.

And the clocks tock.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.


End file.
